[Sunday Culture] The 'Manhole Cover' That Became a Hotspot for Insiders... Featuring Metel and Gundam Designs

Playing the Role of Tourist Products with Various Designs by Local Governments
Also Issuing Cards to Attract Collectors' Interest

"A limited-time mission for the Golden Week holiday will be launched. Let's search the city to find manhole covers featuring Gundam designs and receive mission completion rewards!"

As Japan enters Golden Week, there will be people who will be staring at the streets throughout the holiday. These are people on a quest to find manhole covers with illustrations. When walking the streets of Japan, colorful and uniquely designed sewer manhole covers often catch the eye.

These are literally called 'design manholes.' They reflect the unique characteristics of each region, and there is even a group of enthusiasts who travel around to take photos of these distinctive manhole covers. During this week’s Golden Week, events will be held across various locations where manhole covers are randomly replaced, and those who find them will receive gifts. There is also an event where if you search the city and take a photo of a Gundam manhole cover, you will receive Gundam stickers as mission completion rewards.

(From the left) Gundam manhole cover design presented exclusively for Golden Week and Kitakyushu City's 'Galaxy Express 999' manhole cover.

So why does Japan pay so much attention to manhole covers? Today, we bring you the story of these colorful and fascinating manhole covers.

The first design manhole in Japan appeared in 1978, and coloring started from 1981. Decorating manhole covers originally began to improve the image of the sewer system. However, as attention shifted to the potential use of these manholes as tourist attractions and products, local governments began allocating part of their sewer budgets to design manholes.

Design manholes are used in various ways. Not only do they feature local tourist spots, but some also have QR codes attached that link to pages with information about local festivals or events. ‘Manhole cards’ featuring the patterns of design manholes are also very popular. Showing these cards, which feature manhole cover designs from different regions, can get you free beer at partner stores or discounts on souvenirs, as part of promotional events.

Because of this, manhole covers have become a significant tourist attraction. According to the Japan Sewerage Promotion Platform (GKP), 60% of people who visit local sewer offices or city halls to obtain manhole cards come from outside the area. This means people actively travel from other regions to see the manholes and collect the cards.

In fact, the manhole cover featuring Maetel from Galaxy Express 999 has become a ‘holy site’ attracting fans. In Shizuoka Prefecture, manhole covers featuring characters from the popular idol anime ‘Love Live’ have been installed. Fans visit daily to clean these character manholes, keeping them cleaner than other manhole covers. There are also many clubs such as the ‘Street Observation Society’ with large memberships who walk around to admire manholes.

Additionally, manhole cards are very popular among collectors. Recently, Japanese media reported that over 10 million manhole cards featuring covers from all over the country have been issued since 2016. On secondhand trading apps similar to Korea’s ‘Danggeun Market,’ the manhole card from Tokyo’s Ogasawara Village has become a hot topic, with prices exceeding 60,000 yen (about 580,000 KRW) per card.

Manhole cover featuring characters from the idol animation "Love Live".

The GKP analyzed the reason why Japan is so enthusiastic about design manholes as “reflecting the Japanese people's insistence on combining technology and aesthetics.” They noted that the Japanese obsession with detail fits perfectly with manhole design. While the manhole itself is made using molds, the coloring is done by hand.

Currently, there are about 12,000 types of design manholes nationwide in Japan. Beyond the design itself, great care is taken during production to ensure that the painted surfaces do not become slippery when wet from rain, whether for wheels or shoes. Recently, glow-in-the-dark design manholes have been created so that fire hydrants can be quickly located in case of nighttime fires. These manholes are not only visually enjoyable but also highly practical, making them a tourism resource that offers double benefits.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.